The idea for this story came to me one morning while I was half asleep and it just went from there. I wanna thank LT and especially Deke for all their beta help on this and Elektra for leads on research and basically just listening while I rattled :-).
This is another one of my odd jumbles of Movieverse and comic canon. It's Movieverse Logan with comic book Logan's background although I've taken some liberties with the timeline of Logan's epiphany.
I've also taken some literary license with the existence of burlesque theaters in New York City in the 40's since Mayor Fiorello La Guardia actually began shutting them down in 1937 but I'm sure you all don't really care ;-)
Disclaimer: Logan and anyone else you recognize belong to Marvel and 20th Century Fox. Everyone else is mine but I'm willing to share 'em. I'm poor and not making any money of this so please don't sue me.
Feedback: Fugu me, man!
Three o'clock and Logan was completely exhausted! He'd been watching little Mike since eight o'clock in the morning when Nina had gone out to buy all the fabric and supplies she'd needed for her new costume. He'd taken Mike to the park, to a show, to the ice cream parlor and then back to the park. The kid was inexhaustible. Now they were in Logan's apartment. Mike was curled up on the Murphy bed for his afternoon nap and Logan was finally relaxing with the afternoon paper and a beer.
He'd stuck his head in upstairs on his way in. Nina was still bent over her sewing machine working hard and he told her he'd be up at five to start dinner. He walked over, snapped on the radio and put on one of the mindless soap operas they featured during the day. Pretty soon he was dozing in the chair with the paper in his lap.
He was awakened by Mikey tugging on his sleeve.
"Hey, Mike. You been up long?"
"No."
Logan checked his watch and ruffled the boy's hair. "Well, we better get upstairs and start cooking dinner for your mommy. She's been working hard all day and I'll bet she's hungry."
He went to the icebox and pulled out two paper sacks full of groceries he'd bought for dinner.
Nina looked up from her work when they came in. Mike ran over and she gave him a big hug.
"Did you have fun with Logan today, Mikey?"
"Yes, Mommy." He paused as if considering something. "Mommy, I want Uncle Logan to be my daddy."
Nina blushed and looked a little surprised. "But, honey, it doesn't exactly work that way. Besides, don't you think Mommy might want to have some say in who your new daddy will be? Now, why don't you go get your coloring books and color while Mr. Logan cooks dinner for us."
Mikey nodded and ran off to his room to get his crayons.
"He's a good kid, darlin'. You've done a real good job with him."
She brushed a stray hair out of her eyes. "He's a handful, that's for sure."
He walked over to where she was sitting and looked over her shoulder at the work in her lap.
"You're almost done! That was fast." He fingered the pleated chiffon; pink this time because she had decided to change the color.
She held up the feathered headpiece for his approval. "Just have to put some sequins and rhinestones on the hat and it's all finished!"
He looked duly impressed. Talking to her over his shoulder, he moved to the kitchen. "Joe said you do work for the other girls to make extra money."
She followed him. "Yes. These costumes usually cost several thousand dollars but if the girls buy the fabric I can usually make it for them for a lot less." She moved to the sink and washed her hands. "I've saved quite a bit of money so far. I want to buy a house for Mike and myself soon. There's all kinds of building happening on Long Island and I'd like Mike to grow up with a yard and a dog and other kids around. And one day when I'm too old and decrepit to strip I want to open a dancing school."
He had to admire her for her spirit and her dream. He didn't want to disillusion her by telling her that no matter how much money she'd saved he didn't think a bank would ever give a widow a mortgage.
She watched as he began snapping string beans.
"Logan, isn't there anything I can do to help?"
"Yes you can go sit down in the living room and relax," he told her with a big smile. "Oh, and you can tell me how you like your steak cooked."
Her eyes widened. "Steak? You bought steak? Oh my gosh, Logan. I can't tell you how long it's been since I've had a real steak dinner. You must have used all your ration coupons to get it!"
"Not really, darlin'. Fabric isn't the only thing you can buy on the black market, you know." He gave her a roguish grin.
"Oh, Logan. I don't know what to say. They must have cost a fortune. This is much too extravagant." She went into the living room, coming back purse in hand.
"You have to let me give you something towards dinner. It's not right for you to be spending that kind of money on Mike and me."
He took her purse from her and set it down on the kitchen table.
"Absolutely not, darlin'. It's the least I can do after all the trouble ya went to to get me the room and for all the trouble I've caused ya with Rosie."
She opened her mouth as if she was about to protest but he shushed her and turned back to peeling. She stood for a moment watching him expertly peel the potatoes. She figured that must be a skill they all pick up in the army doing KP.
Running her fingers through her hair she turned and went back to the living room. Mikey was lying on his stomach on the floor quietly coloring. Nina walked over to the radio and switched it on.
"Mike, look at the time." She said pointing to the clock on top of the radio. "The little hand is on the five and the big hand is on the three. You know what that means."
The little boy sprang up and began jumping around. "Lone Ranger! Lone Ranger!" He started cheering excitedly.
She giggled and tuned in the show for him. He sat down on the carpet mere inches from the radio and stared at it in rapt fascination as the narrator began recapping last night's show.
She sat down in the armchair next to the radio to start putting the finishing touches on her headpiece. Logan came in and sat down on the couch to finish reading the paper.
She glanced over at him and then at Mike on the floor. Anyone looking through the window would have thought they were just an ordinary family relaxing before dinner. Nina felt her throat constrict. She looked at Logan through lowered lashes. She'd only known him a little over a week but she could tell he was a good man. He was certainly a kind man. And he was definitely a good-looking man. She'd never really taken the time to look closely at him so she indulged herself now.
He had thick, dark hair slicked back with pomade and, although it was slightly longer than was fashionable, it seemed to suit him. His eyes flicked over the paper and she caught her breath, noticing for the first time their vibrant hazel hue. His face was strong and handsome and completed to perfection by an aquiline nose. Brandy's pulse raced slightly.
Logan glanced over at her and she quickly cast her eyes back down to her work.
"I have to go check on the vegetables and put the steaks on, darlin'. Dinner will probably only be another fifteen minutes."
The meal was pleasant. Logan set about trying to teach Michael how to use a knife and fork and his comical attempts at cutting his steak had Logan and Nina in stitches, especially since Nina would only allow him to have a butter knife. Logan finally took pity on the boy and cut his meat for him.
After dinner, Nina gave Mike his bath and got him ready for bed while Logan cleared away the leftovers and did the dinner dishes.
"Mommy, I want Uncle Logan to tuck me in," the little boy said plaintively.
"Aw, Mike. Uncle Logan has worked very hard today. Don't you think we could give him a break this once?"
She heard a chuckle and turned to see Logan leaning in the doorway.
"It's alright, darlin'." He came in, sat on the other side of the bed and began tucking the covers around the edges of Mike's shoulders. "So, Big Guy, did you have fun today?"
The boy nodded. "Yes."
"What did you like best? The park or the movie?"
"The ice cream!"
Logan laughed out loud.
"Well, if your mother says it's okay, maybe I'll take you out for ice cream again next week. Now it's time for you to go to sleep, tiger."
Mike held his arms out and Logan gave him a hug. Nina kissed him on both his cheeks and his forehead, and then shut off the light. They went back out to the living room, leaving the door ajar.
Nina began packing up her costume to take to the theater in the morning. She made a pretense of concentrating on her task so that Logan wouldn't see all the different thoughts and emotions working through her.
She looked up when he cleared his throat.
"Well, I know you probably have a lot to do before bed and to tell the truth, I'm pretty exhausted after chasing after Mikey all day, so I'm gonna go turn in."
She walked him to the door.
"Logan, I really can't thank you enough for everything you did for Mike and me today. I never could have finished what I needed to do if I'd had to watch him and I really appreciate the dinner you made for us."
He smiled down into her face and brushed some stray hairs off her cheek. For a moment she thought he might kiss her and was inexplicably disappointed when he reached to pull the door open instead.
"It was a pleasure, Nina," he said softly, using her real name. "You get a good night's sleep. I'll see you in the morning."
In the blink of an eye the door closed and he was gone. Nina released a breath she hadn't even known she was holding.
Quietly she made her way through the house to the bathroom, shutting off lights on the way. She turned on the taps and ran water for her bath. Absently she put her hand to the place on her cheek where he'd brushed it with his fingers. She shivered. She felt a little flushed and hoped she wasn't getting ill.
When the tub filled, she shed her cotton housedress and under things, pinned up her long blonde hair and stepped into the soothing water. Her muscles were stiff from sitting all day long and she relaxed into the heat as some of the tension eased. It would be good to dance again tomorrow.
She always felt so stiff and confined on the days she didn't get to stretch and bend and dance at the theater. Dancing had been her love ever since she was a small child and her mother had taken her to Miss Belle's Dancing School back home. Nina had dreamed of being the next Shirley Temple and tap dancing her way to stardom. But then Miss Belle had given her a small ballet solo in the class recital and from that day forward her dream had changed to being a Prima Ballerina like the great Anna Pavlova.
She'd studied hard. Practicing hours every day after school, determined to make her dream come true. Grant, Michael's father, had been her high school sweetheart and everything had been perfect until the war came. Then her whole world had turned upside down.
Grant was drafted, she became pregnant with Mike and then Grant had been killed shortly after being shipped out to Europe. She had taken her son and come to New York after all, determined to salvage something from the ashes of her dreams. She'd fallen into stripping as a way to dance and make a living.
She was ambivalent about it at first. She'd been raised in a religious household and the thought of taking one's clothes off in front of men for money seemed sinful, but eventually she'd come to enjoy the feeling of power it gave her. And it allowed her to express herself creatively in so many ways; she was responsible for creating all aspects of her routines from designing her costume to choosing the music to choreographing the steps. There were no men to tell her they knew better than she did. She obviously knew well enough since she was very popular and very successful.
She'd been perfectly content in her life with her memories of Grant and had never missed male companionship. . . until now. Logan was so kind to her and good with Michael and he had her wondering about things she'd never wondered about before.
She sighed. The water in the tub was cool now and her fingers and toes had turned to prunes. She opened the drain and rose to towel off and slip her pajamas on.
Walking barefoot to her bedroom, she pulled the covers back and crawled in. It would be another long day tomorrow and she had to be up early. She punched her pillow and got comfortable, but sleep would not come. Every time she closed her eyes, Logan's face danced in her head. What was the matter with her anyway? She'd only known him for a few weeks. She'd known Grant her whole entire life and she'd never lain awake at night thinking about him.
She got up and made herself some warm milk. While it heated, she stood with a hand on the back of a kitchen chair and did some plies and releves, hoping the activity would ease some of the tension.
She drank her milk and went back to bed. Finally falling asleep in the early hours of the morning she dreamt strange dreams that featured both Grant and Logan. When the alarm went off, she awoke groggy and irritable.
Logan, too, had lain awake long into the night, staring at the ceiling. He felt things for Nina he hadn't felt for a woman in a very long time. She was beautiful and delicate and he wanted her badly, but it was more than that. He wanted to hold her and never let her go, protect her from all the terrible things he knew existed in the world.
There'd only been one other woman in his life that made him feel tender emotions like this, Silver Fox. She had been his childhood sweetheart, but they'd lost touch while he was in France fighting in the First World War and when he returned to Canada, he couldn't find any trace of her.
He'd never wanted to protect anyone the way he wanted to protect Nina. It was ironic, since she seemed to be doing a good job of taking care of herself, which only made him want to take care of her more - so she wouldn't have to do it on her own. He'd seen and been a part of so much death and evil in the past six years; surely it was time for him to find some goodness and happiness in life.
He closed his eyes and began to meditate, hoping to find some peace, at least, if not rest.
All references to characters belonging to the X-Men Universe are (c) and TM the Marvel Comics Group, 20th Century Fox and all related entities. All rights reserved. Any reproduction, duplication or distribution of these materials in any form is expressly prohibited. No money is being made from this archive. All images are also (c) and TM the Marvel Comics Group, 20th Century Fox and all related entities; they are not mine. This website, its operators and any content used on this site relating to the X-Men are not authorized by Marvel, Fox, etc. I am not, nor do I claim to be affiliated with any of these entities in any way.